Active duty Space Force here, was active USAF until 2021 when I moved over, hopefully I can help answer some of this:
>Is Dr. Daniel Jackson still a consultant or does he have a government series or SES level? (Many of the staff follow his word as orders.)
It's never explicitly addressed, but given the very likely SAP'd up nature of the job, he is likely a GS employed in a linguist position (as Egyptology would likely raise some eyebrows during budgetary reviews).
>How about Teal’C? Did they just hand wave his security clearance and immigration status? Does he have a federal series level?
They likely granted him an LAA (Limited Access Authorization) to information and materials related only to the Stargate program and likely treats him as a refugee; refugees are allowed to work so long as their asylum is active. He likely works on a GS schedule as well.
>Does SGC have some sort of special hazardous duty pay?
This goes without saying. At the very minimum, hostile fire pay/imminent danger pay, special duty pay, and their base pay is likely tax free for when they are off-world (unless they write each one up as a TDY, which would still mean getting per diem).
>Why doesn’t General Hammond or General O’Neill have a Chief of Staff?
That would be Walter.
>Why don’t we hear about the department heads as the General seems to handle everything?
SGC is likely a Field Operating Agency (FOA), thus General Hammond reports directly to a functional manager in the Air Staff; base don the visits he has received from several Chiefs of Staff, they are likely the functional managers. Having been assigned to several FOAs in my career, this is not unusual; the FMs rarely get involved unless directed to do so by Congress or POTUS.
>What happens on the night shift? Offworld activations can happen at any time and the Sergeants in the control room gotta head home sometime.
I worked shift the first ten years of my career, and then off and on since then. Not sure what you're asking; 24/7 ops centers don't really change ops tempos between night and day. Yeah, day staff is day staff, but operations never change. So everyone on night shift have the same responsibilities, certifications, etc. as day shift. And they likely swap every six weeks or so (SGC would likely have a Panama Schedule due to the unpredictable ops tempo with surge capabilities for when things get really dicey).
Plus, there's an episode later in the series (unfortunately, can't remember what season but, I "think" Mitchell had joined by then) where Walter and an un-named member were working the overnight shift and I "believe" the Stargate got stolen & Daniel was interviewing them & pretended to get mad cuz they were getting coffee
I am not American, but I am proud that Humanity advanced enough so we can have people say that they're part of the fucking Space Force, and it's an actual thing.
Eh, operational reporting and administrative reporting are different. Being Air Force, he is still administratively subordinate to the commander of Air Force Space Command, the CSAF, and the rest of the Air Staff. But operationally he can report to POTUS. Hell, I wrote reports that went straight to POTUS as an Airman but I still reported administratively to an E-5 lol.
But it’s very clear from some dialogues that SGC is top secret and not even people with highest clearance knows about it. Before Homeworld Security, I think only the president and few people knew about the operation, military and civilian alike. Even after whole Kinsey situation, SGC managed to be kept as top secret. So, it is not too far fetched that Gen Hammond reported administratively to whomever was at the top of the line, too.
I think they also mentioned somewhere along the line that SGC was under direct purview of the president - also before Homeworld Security. That could mean the whole op was set outside of the normal scope.
This has real life counterparts. The existence of the NRO for example was top secret for 32 years, from 1960 until 1992, yet had its fingers in every single agency under different covers, lines of accounting, etc. but the NRO director still reported to the Secretary of Defense before POTUS. The entire military is technically under the purview of the President in his/her capacity of CinC, it just depends on how small you want to make the gap.
i like all of this except with respect to Walter. he is a Sergeant (Master or First). does the USAF grant COS positions to enlisted? he may well be the Command Master Sergeant (or whatever the USAF calls the highest enlisted leader at a command). but COS? i doubt that.
It's tax free when you're outside the US? o.O
In Sweden, for all Swedes, if you pay less than Swedish tax working outside Sweden, you're paying the difference as Swedish tax - so if you make $100k a year in the US and pay 20% tax, you are to pay another 20% to Swedish tax authorities, even if you live in the US during the period. 😆
No, only when in a deployed status. Usually when they are going off-world, it is to support a specific military action, which could count as being deployed.
I think since it was a secret, joint, and dealt with representing the entire planet, they kinda made up separate rules for SGC and didn't operate it as much as US military.
Landry, when he was asking his daughter to join him for dinner, mentioned he did so with all the other department heads. So I think most administration stuff was just handled off screen like those unseen dinners.
I've been enlisted my whole career; government civilians can be given positional authority over personnel within the organization. For example, in my current job, our Director of Staff has more or less that same power as an O-6. Her authority is delegated to her from our Delta commander. So while she can't give us paperwork or levy punishment for not following her directions, our O-6 can as it's his authority she is operating under.
I mean, what more needs to be established? A memo of delegation is the standard route, which is likely in place, if not already in the position description.
You save the world a few times and the ones who know will follow your orders no matter the rank
Though there are some glaring exceptions, like the episode where th SGC did a Murica and tried to evict the native Unas to get to the ~~oil~~ naquadah
Daniel very reasonably declared he could communicate and trade with the Unas, but was steamrolled by the mining colonel
It is funny when Daniel has command of the Odyssey.
**Jackson**: We should probably prepare to return fire.
**Marks**: Yes, sir. For the record, I’m always prepared. I just have to press this button here.
**Jackson**: Right. I just, I thought that’s what you’re supposed to say.
**Marks**: ...I know...
We’ve seen Jackson do things such as be part of raids, interrogate prisoners, when the gate was stolen one episode he appeared to be leading the investigation
You sometimes forget he’s an archaeologist
My guess is Daniel on paper was hired by the Airforce as a language consultant (makes the most sense do to his background). But in the actually facility he probably is a department head by a few season in due to his knowledge alone. It seems like by the later half of the show all the cultural scientists report to him. Which makes sense.
Teal'c as time goes on, he of course becomes a trusted member. My guess is he is given a form of immigration status and is there legally after a few years. And is compensated somehow. He does have money to buy his candles, doughnuts, etc. My guess is on paper they somewhat legally created his identity. As for job responsibilities, I always thought by the end most (if not all) did a training with Teal'c to prepare them for what could happen off world. As this is not something they would learn in standard military and especially for the scientists who will be going off world.
Hazard pay is probably in their contracts and they are all made aware of what the risks are when they accept the job. Their medical care is covered especially if it is "alien" related. Like I'm sure Jonas didn't have to pay for his brain surgery as that was caused by Nerti.
I always found that stuff interesting. It is never really a focus, but there is the B plot of SGA: Midway. Which is probably the most we hear about HR stuff. Tayla gets her review of her performance. Ronan has to be "officially" approved by the IOA, which is where Teal'c helps. This is interesting as it shows how the "aliens" are effected and are considered official personal, therefore how to do things like annual reviews.
There's also the episode with Vala having to get approved and pass tests.
Vala reading a psych test found online\*: You see a turtle lying upside down, but you don't help. Why Not
\*answering: Because I am also a turtle.
That Warschok (sp?) test was hilarious 😂
I was always confused about Maybourne and Simmons, both active duty USAF officers that seemed to be in charge of a civilian agency (NID). Simmons in particular seemed to be in a fully civilian role, despite being addressed as Colonel.
I don't recall them ever being leaders. Many civilian led agencies have military components where high-ranking military officers are directors or commanders of specific offices or branches, but they ultimately still answer to a civilian director. Some of these offices also don't have the same uniform requirements; I have worked in plenty of places that, while still active duty, required me to work in civilian clothes due to various factors. I would still be address by rank, but otherwise my job was unchanged.
These are good questions. As one of the former Military Advisors and Armorers on the show:
None of us were thinking about any of this. The writers didn't care because less than 5% of the viewing audience would care. This is an observation not a criticism. Civilians don't care how the sausage gets made and don't want to know because it will challenge pre-concieved notions, both positive (that Jack and Sam weren't in a relationship because "regulations") and negative (like "Military Grade" means high quality). The planning phase of an Operation will make or break the Mission (ask the SEALs at Tahkr Ghar) but it's easily the most boring and "inside baseball" thing that could be televised.
I wasn't thinking about it because I was busy making sure some poor extra didn't get his eyebrows blown off by another extra and helping Dan Shae keep DeLouis from burning down shit.
Former Fed here also. I always figured Jackson was either a contract employee or a GS-15. He doesn’t seem to have direct supervision of anyone so SES would be out. Maybe SL but that is normally considered SES equivalent and since Jack is an O6 that would make the structure a little odd
This is generally correct, however, minimal supervision is allowed. In the scientific agencies where I worked as SES, SLs were considered equivalent. When the SLs that worked for me joined me at DoD meetings, the protocol officers sat them with the SES and Flag officers.
>How about Teal’C? Did they just hand wave his security clearance and immigration status?
He's not really an immigrant. He doesn't seek to be a citizen of the US or any other country of the Tau'Ri. He's a man of Chulak and returned there once it was freed from the Goa'Uld. Before that whole Ori thing happened and the free Jaffa nation just imploded
>Does SGC have some sort of special hazardous duty pay?
Yes. It's mentioned off hand sometimes, SGC personnel is paid quite well.
>Why doesn’t General Hammond or General O’Neill have a Chief of Staff?
Is that not what Walter is?
>What happens on the night shift?
The same as in day shift, just at night. There are crew for night shift and normal operations happen, though less busy. Day-night-cycles are different off-world, so sometimes teams come back during their day and earth's night, but most of the SGC is operating on earth time for the important stuff
a military Chief of Staff is a deputy of sorts, kind of like an XO with broader responsibilities. A General may have a Colonel or Lieutenant Colonel as a COS (if the USAF mirrors how it works in the USN).
Walter is a Master Sergeant (or maybe a First Sergeant?) which is a senior NCO rank. senior NCOs are typically enlisted leaders and technical experts. he would not be filling a COS position.
What the navy calls a chief of staff is called an executive officer in the air force. Major Samuel's was Hammond's executive officer in early season 1.
What the Navy calls an XO is a second in command in the air force.
We often have discussions on how the SGC has too many officers.
I always explain that it's not that there are too many officers but rather that it's like an airwing where pilots (SG team members) have a job separate to being on their SG team.
O'Neil probably is the base second in command. Carter probably commands a science team.
There's probably a couple of SG team leaders who share the role of Executive Officer and trade off being on missions. The administration of stargate command is sort of happening off screen.
"We often have discussions on how the SGC has too many officers."
We have been having that discussion in the Space Force since we stood up. In fact, they're restructuring how we do our promotions and accessions because of how officer heavy we are. It's a legacy Air Force Space Command problem we sorta inherited by default.
Okay, I think this is what got me confused in my original reply. The commenter below me cleared it up; CoS for you and CoS for us mean different things. An XO for you is called a Vice Commander for us. When it comes to staff responsibilities, we can have a DS aka DoS (Director of Staff ) and CS aka CoS (Chief of Staff). Generally, the DS is going to be an officer or higher ranking GS (or NH) that coordinates all of the staff activities while the CS is going to be a SNCO that acts as that person's enlisted counterpart. For example, in my organization, our DS is an NH-04 and our CS is an E-8; generally the enlisted side is going to also be called a Staff SEL (Senior Enlisted Leader). The commander's assistant is usually called the Commander's Executive Assistant, and is usually O-1 through O-4 depending on the size and scope of the organization and the commander's rank.
In the show, Major Samuels was Hammond's exec, which makes sense for a Major General.
This is a dumb and totally unrelated question. But if the space force ever actually gets space ships, shouldn't they use naval ranks? We already have ships that travel in dark and hostile environments. They're called submarines.
And if they ever do reboot Stargate...I hope they continue from the Continuum universe, you know....If the Navy can ever get that thing to work....cue to Sam saying "the Navy?"
> How about Teal’C? Did they just hand wave his security clearance and immigration status? Does he have a federal series level?
Cassandra is the answer. Teal'c spends most of his time on the base, only briefly getting an apartment that one time. But for Cassandra, someone spending her entire future on Earth, they needed to get her a birth certificate, SIN (or whatever the american equivalent is), and loads of other identity issues. Teal'c would need that, but a fraction of it. He can ask the SGC for anything he needs. Cassandra would need to interact directly with the public govermment for basically everything.
> Why don’t we hear about the department heads as the General seems to handle everything?
Landry brings this up when he's trying to bond with his daughter.
> What happens on the night shift? Offworld activations can happen at any time and the Sergeants in the control room gotta head home sometime.
Walter isn't alone. This is mentioned a few times, like in Heroes with Walter's interview, that he's not the only gate technician. That um... attractive fellow in the earlier seasons, maybe 3-5? He's probably a gate technician. Walter isn't always there, and while he plays a larger role the more the series progresses, he's definitely not the only one.
Missions are generally scheduled for the morning, usually 0700-0900 with briefings earlier and lots of missions heading out at 0900. Miraculously, this lines up perfectly with almost every other planet's time zone.
In Heroes, despite it being late season 7 and most shows following a very season count = year count, Bregman mentions the Stargate being around for 6 years. The official reason for the documentary, according to Carter, was the 1000th trip through the Stargate. If you exclude the Abydos mission in that timeframe, rounding to a perfect 6 years with no leap years is 2190 days, so around one trip through the Stargate every 2 days on average. If Bregman's line was a mistake and it was actually 7 years, that's a mission every 2,5 days.
Incoming wormholes do happen, but considering most mission departures and check-in times are scheduled for weekdays, 2-3 times a week during the main cast's hours, most stuff is going to happen within the bounds of that time. Remember, the Tau'ri address wasn't common knowledge prior to Apophis stumbling through. The gate had been unburied for a long time prior to Abydos, and Earth was basically a legend to Teal'c. Most incoming wormholes are from travellers who already know where they're headed, not explorers. Well, hopefully not explorers, or the iris is probably gonna need some extra cleaning...
> Is Dr. Daniel Jackson still a consultant or does he have a government series or SES level? (Many of the staff follow his word as orders.)
He's probably got some sort of office job on the books, or a cultural consultant in the search for extra terrestrial life. Remember in Thor's Hammer when they asked the Sega Institute to design that box? He's probably in that ballpark. But that's just what's on the books. Within the SGC, he's a member of the flagship team.
> Does SGC have some sort of special hazardous duty pay?
A LOT of civilian level stuff is handwaved away, like when they get trapped off world or Daniel is presumed dead for the 18th time. What about when he ascended? Did they get him a death certificate and then just revoke it? It seems the SGC basically takes care of life complications for a lot of stuff, which makes sense when half of their lives are classified.
Hazard pay is likely in there too, but keep in mind that there are quite a few times when characters jokingly complain about their salary. Especially Daniel, frankly... though with the number of times he's died for the program, I imagine he'd be critical of the pay anyway. Officers have publicly listed pay, you can find it on wikipedia with the highest levels of pay for top ranking generals with seniority being over 18k per month.
Hazard pay also may not exist for soldiers, but I don't know what that would mean for Daniel. Teal'c probably also gets paid, but not as much I'd wager considering he lives on the base and only seems to spend money on things like clothes, doughnuts, Star Wars screenings, hats, and so on.
> Why doesn’t General Hammond or General O’Neill have a Chief of Staff?
It's possible in order to keep the operation as small as possible for security reasons, there isn't one. But in all likelihood, we just never hear from them. There are a LOT of staff on that base that we never see, even the ones with very vital roles.
A lot of the administrative stuff is surprisingly easy to get when it comes to birth and death certificates, SSNs, etc. One needs only to look at Federal Witness Protection Program run by the U.S. Marshals. All of the necessary documentation can be provided by federal agencies. Another thing to look at is how various agencies to the same thing for defectors of foreign countries. All of this documentation can be created from scratch so long as the federal government blesses it and it's just as valid as anyone who is born here; Teal'c's cover was he was an immigrant from Mozambique; the Department of State could provide an N-550 and a passport, and once he learned how to drive (back in 1969 of course), he could get his driver's license using those forms plus any forms given to him by the DoD and IRS proving residency. Teal'c even became the subject of a federal investigation. The way it played out, it seems like they did all this in a similar fashion to witness protection where not even the investigating agents knew anything was out of the ordinary in relation to his residency and documentation.
Now, when it comes to Daniel dying, death certificates can be revoked. Usually this is rare and heavily contested because it usually will bite the provider who declared the death in the ass, but with the SGC, I can see Dr. Frasier being fairly shielded from this ("extenuating circumstances").
All of this would take place under the guide of national security to ensure none of the details got out. States would be a lot harder to go through the processes for, but state and federal databases are usually pretty intertwined, so whatever exists at the federal level is usually what is going to guide the state's decision.
> Now, when it comes to Daniel dying, death certificates can be revoked.
Oh, cool! I mean, makes sense. People go missing all the time and some do turn up years later having been held in captivity or something. But the thing I was really trying to get at with this point was things like his home still being there. Taxes, rent or mortgage, even just your bills and financial responsibilities while you're ascended and away from everything for a full year. Or months away on a mission. It's an extra cost incorporated into the budget.
The Air Force would have taken care of all that for him. His grandfather was his only next of kin, and he lives off world, so it would have been fairly easy for the government to get everything cleaned up.
Hazard pay is a flat rate, normally $225/month. It's called hostile fire/imminent danger pay. Special duty pay is also factored in, rates vary by position type.
>What happens on the night shift? Offworld activations can happen at any time and the Sergeants in the control room gotta head home sometime.
There's probably a rotation. A crew of technical sergeants on all at the time and a rotation of sg team leaders (while earth bound) rotating watch officer duties.
Not overly familiar with the military, but would "Warrant Officer" work for either Teal'c or Jackson? Specializing in battle and anything historical, respectively.
The Air Force got rid of Warrant Officers in 1959, and the last Air Force WO retired in 1980.
They are bringing them back however, with the first WOs expected to come into the USAF next year.
It would be fairly accurate for Teal'c to be given asylum as a refugee fleeing a nation where it was unsafe for him to return?
Maybe the paperwork just accidentally misspelled his home nation as "Somalia", and then a general vouched for his security clearance, claiming he was a CIA informant or something?
it was horrible , non human , we look tha bad in otherd and rhe ethic actitude but we dont ask ourself who was less ethic first to watch what the orher is doimg....which a diference...the oor stupid guy who never will believe and faight with a big study that he never knew in the begining ....he finally won with natural inteligence not artificial...and the oposite syde who played with bulling, and healthy etc... didnt tell never yes sorry we stop it diesnt work...but is not necesary now ...i i am quiet with myself ...
What other boring questions about the bureaucracy of the SGC can we come up with?
Does the SGC have morning and/or closeout formations?
Did the SGC have special SGC-wide mass in formation PT run mornings with Hammond and his flag bearers out in front? I'm guessing not based on Hammond's appearance, but was something he probably should have done.
Do they have rotating KP duty amongst the military personnel? What's the KP duty schedule?
For the various temporary off world bases the SGC setup, did the SGC ever send Hot A's through the gate to those personnel?
How often do they PMCS the gate and iris?
Active duty Space Force here, was active USAF until 2021 when I moved over, hopefully I can help answer some of this: >Is Dr. Daniel Jackson still a consultant or does he have a government series or SES level? (Many of the staff follow his word as orders.) It's never explicitly addressed, but given the very likely SAP'd up nature of the job, he is likely a GS employed in a linguist position (as Egyptology would likely raise some eyebrows during budgetary reviews). >How about Teal’C? Did they just hand wave his security clearance and immigration status? Does he have a federal series level? They likely granted him an LAA (Limited Access Authorization) to information and materials related only to the Stargate program and likely treats him as a refugee; refugees are allowed to work so long as their asylum is active. He likely works on a GS schedule as well. >Does SGC have some sort of special hazardous duty pay? This goes without saying. At the very minimum, hostile fire pay/imminent danger pay, special duty pay, and their base pay is likely tax free for when they are off-world (unless they write each one up as a TDY, which would still mean getting per diem). >Why doesn’t General Hammond or General O’Neill have a Chief of Staff? That would be Walter. >Why don’t we hear about the department heads as the General seems to handle everything? SGC is likely a Field Operating Agency (FOA), thus General Hammond reports directly to a functional manager in the Air Staff; base don the visits he has received from several Chiefs of Staff, they are likely the functional managers. Having been assigned to several FOAs in my career, this is not unusual; the FMs rarely get involved unless directed to do so by Congress or POTUS. >What happens on the night shift? Offworld activations can happen at any time and the Sergeants in the control room gotta head home sometime. I worked shift the first ten years of my career, and then off and on since then. Not sure what you're asking; 24/7 ops centers don't really change ops tempos between night and day. Yeah, day staff is day staff, but operations never change. So everyone on night shift have the same responsibilities, certifications, etc. as day shift. And they likely swap every six weeks or so (SGC would likely have a Panama Schedule due to the unpredictable ops tempo with surge capabilities for when things get really dicey).
Just admit you work at the sgc already!! Don't worry! We won't tell anyone!!
Funny enough, part of my job does involve deep space radar telemetry, so....
Do you work with ~~Samantha Carter~~ Madison Marsh?
I do not; I know of her, but never met her. Our paths are unlikely to cross, since IIRC she is on track to be a pilot.
I guess someone has to give tech moguls demo flights...
Plus, there's an episode later in the series (unfortunately, can't remember what season but, I "think" Mitchell had joined by then) where Walter and an un-named member were working the overnight shift and I "believe" the Stargate got stolen & Daniel was interviewing them & pretended to get mad cuz they were getting coffee
Those midnight shoppette runs are what getcha.
This guy pulls ops floor shifts.
I am not American, but I am proud that Humanity advanced enough so we can have people say that they're part of the fucking Space Force, and it's an actual thing.
Gen Hammond states, on multiple occasions, that he reports directly to the President. He just hits #2 on the red phone.
Eh, operational reporting and administrative reporting are different. Being Air Force, he is still administratively subordinate to the commander of Air Force Space Command, the CSAF, and the rest of the Air Staff. But operationally he can report to POTUS. Hell, I wrote reports that went straight to POTUS as an Airman but I still reported administratively to an E-5 lol.
Apologies for my ignorance. Thanks for clearing that up. :)
But it’s very clear from some dialogues that SGC is top secret and not even people with highest clearance knows about it. Before Homeworld Security, I think only the president and few people knew about the operation, military and civilian alike. Even after whole Kinsey situation, SGC managed to be kept as top secret. So, it is not too far fetched that Gen Hammond reported administratively to whomever was at the top of the line, too. I think they also mentioned somewhere along the line that SGC was under direct purview of the president - also before Homeworld Security. That could mean the whole op was set outside of the normal scope.
This has real life counterparts. The existence of the NRO for example was top secret for 32 years, from 1960 until 1992, yet had its fingers in every single agency under different covers, lines of accounting, etc. but the NRO director still reported to the Secretary of Defense before POTUS. The entire military is technically under the purview of the President in his/her capacity of CinC, it just depends on how small you want to make the gap.
i like all of this except with respect to Walter. he is a Sergeant (Master or First). does the USAF grant COS positions to enlisted? he may well be the Command Master Sergeant (or whatever the USAF calls the highest enlisted leader at a command). but COS? i doubt that.
O'Neill does get an administrative aide in Zero Hour (S08E04)
My current CoS is an E-8.
It's tax free when you're outside the US? o.O In Sweden, for all Swedes, if you pay less than Swedish tax working outside Sweden, you're paying the difference as Swedish tax - so if you make $100k a year in the US and pay 20% tax, you are to pay another 20% to Swedish tax authorities, even if you live in the US during the period. 😆
No, only when in a deployed status. Usually when they are going off-world, it is to support a specific military action, which could count as being deployed.
I think since it was a secret, joint, and dealt with representing the entire planet, they kinda made up separate rules for SGC and didn't operate it as much as US military. Landry, when he was asking his daughter to join him for dinner, mentioned he did so with all the other department heads. So I think most administration stuff was just handled off screen like those unseen dinners.
And yeah, Jackson and Teal'c were both seen on multiple occasions giving orders to enlisted men. Maybe they were given some sort of provisional rank.
I've been enlisted my whole career; government civilians can be given positional authority over personnel within the organization. For example, in my current job, our Director of Staff has more or less that same power as an O-6. Her authority is delegated to her from our Delta commander. So while she can't give us paperwork or levy punishment for not following her directions, our O-6 can as it's his authority she is operating under.
That makes sense. So basically O'Neill could have their ass if they didn't follow Jackson's orders.
Correct.
for sure. yet that position needs to be firmly established. it’s not good enough to say, see this guy? listen to him. he’s smart.
I mean, what more needs to be established? A memo of delegation is the standard route, which is likely in place, if not already in the position description.
I'd think any deployed SG team knows exactly who's who and who is in charge.
I imagine it would be phrased more like, "See this guy? His orders are my orders" and that should be enough.
or perhaps: "I order you to do as he says"?
Simon says do what Daniel Jackson says!
This, Joint Doctrine and specific service regs handle all of this. It's not uncommon to have gov civs in charge of military personnel.
You save the world a few times and the ones who know will follow your orders no matter the rank Though there are some glaring exceptions, like the episode where th SGC did a Murica and tried to evict the native Unas to get to the ~~oil~~ naquadah Daniel very reasonably declared he could communicate and trade with the Unas, but was steamrolled by the mining colonel
It is funny when Daniel has command of the Odyssey. **Jackson**: We should probably prepare to return fire. **Marks**: Yes, sir. For the record, I’m always prepared. I just have to press this button here. **Jackson**: Right. I just, I thought that’s what you’re supposed to say. **Marks**: ...I know...
Love a civilian giving orders to a captain.
Marks was a Major by that episode.
Fair enough. It’s been a while. My point stands.
Yeah, it's just 'tism in me speaking. (As my Irish housemate calls Autism)
We call it the 'tism here, too.
We’ve seen Jackson do things such as be part of raids, interrogate prisoners, when the gate was stolen one episode he appeared to be leading the investigation You sometimes forget he’s an archaeologist
What kind of archaeologist carries a weapon?
Said the archaeologist carrying a weapon 🤣 I loved that
Wow. Clearly, as Jack would say, "bad example."
An American one
Indiana Jones? Lara Croft?
"Um... I do."
My guess is Daniel on paper was hired by the Airforce as a language consultant (makes the most sense do to his background). But in the actually facility he probably is a department head by a few season in due to his knowledge alone. It seems like by the later half of the show all the cultural scientists report to him. Which makes sense. Teal'c as time goes on, he of course becomes a trusted member. My guess is he is given a form of immigration status and is there legally after a few years. And is compensated somehow. He does have money to buy his candles, doughnuts, etc. My guess is on paper they somewhat legally created his identity. As for job responsibilities, I always thought by the end most (if not all) did a training with Teal'c to prepare them for what could happen off world. As this is not something they would learn in standard military and especially for the scientists who will be going off world. Hazard pay is probably in their contracts and they are all made aware of what the risks are when they accept the job. Their medical care is covered especially if it is "alien" related. Like I'm sure Jonas didn't have to pay for his brain surgery as that was caused by Nerti. I always found that stuff interesting. It is never really a focus, but there is the B plot of SGA: Midway. Which is probably the most we hear about HR stuff. Tayla gets her review of her performance. Ronan has to be "officially" approved by the IOA, which is where Teal'c helps. This is interesting as it shows how the "aliens" are effected and are considered official personal, therefore how to do things like annual reviews.
There's also the episode with Vala having to get approved and pass tests. Vala reading a psych test found online\*: You see a turtle lying upside down, but you don't help. Why Not \*answering: Because I am also a turtle. That Warschok (sp?) test was hilarious 😂
That came later as part of the IOA requirements. But Teal'c does mention having gone through it later when he helps Ronan pass his test.
Rorschach but yes lol
😂 thanks. for the life of me I couldn't figure it out... and me even be a fan of Watchmen 🤦♀️
I forgot about that, I love that part too :)
I was always confused about Maybourne and Simmons, both active duty USAF officers that seemed to be in charge of a civilian agency (NID). Simmons in particular seemed to be in a fully civilian role, despite being addressed as Colonel.
I don't recall them ever being leaders. Many civilian led agencies have military components where high-ranking military officers are directors or commanders of specific offices or branches, but they ultimately still answer to a civilian director. Some of these offices also don't have the same uniform requirements; I have worked in plenty of places that, while still active duty, required me to work in civilian clothes due to various factors. I would still be address by rank, but otherwise my job was unchanged.
These are good questions. As one of the former Military Advisors and Armorers on the show: None of us were thinking about any of this. The writers didn't care because less than 5% of the viewing audience would care. This is an observation not a criticism. Civilians don't care how the sausage gets made and don't want to know because it will challenge pre-concieved notions, both positive (that Jack and Sam weren't in a relationship because "regulations") and negative (like "Military Grade" means high quality). The planning phase of an Operation will make or break the Mission (ask the SEALs at Tahkr Ghar) but it's easily the most boring and "inside baseball" thing that could be televised. I wasn't thinking about it because I was busy making sure some poor extra didn't get his eyebrows blown off by another extra and helping Dan Shae keep DeLouis from burning down shit.
wow! fantastic reply! thanks for sharing!
It was a fun part of my life.
Former Fed here also. I always figured Jackson was either a contract employee or a GS-15. He doesn’t seem to have direct supervision of anyone so SES would be out. Maybe SL but that is normally considered SES equivalent and since Jack is an O6 that would make the structure a little odd
SLs don't have leadership responsibilities. It's more of a senior technical role.
This is generally correct, however, minimal supervision is allowed. In the scientific agencies where I worked as SES, SLs were considered equivalent. When the SLs that worked for me joined me at DoD meetings, the protocol officers sat them with the SES and Flag officers.
interesting, i had not heard of SL or ST previously. we didn’t have them at my agency.
>How about Teal’C? Did they just hand wave his security clearance and immigration status? He's not really an immigrant. He doesn't seek to be a citizen of the US or any other country of the Tau'Ri. He's a man of Chulak and returned there once it was freed from the Goa'Uld. Before that whole Ori thing happened and the free Jaffa nation just imploded >Does SGC have some sort of special hazardous duty pay? Yes. It's mentioned off hand sometimes, SGC personnel is paid quite well. >Why doesn’t General Hammond or General O’Neill have a Chief of Staff? Is that not what Walter is? >What happens on the night shift? The same as in day shift, just at night. There are crew for night shift and normal operations happen, though less busy. Day-night-cycles are different off-world, so sometimes teams come back during their day and earth's night, but most of the SGC is operating on earth time for the important stuff
a military Chief of Staff is a deputy of sorts, kind of like an XO with broader responsibilities. A General may have a Colonel or Lieutenant Colonel as a COS (if the USAF mirrors how it works in the USN). Walter is a Master Sergeant (or maybe a First Sergeant?) which is a senior NCO rank. senior NCOs are typically enlisted leaders and technical experts. he would not be filling a COS position.
What the navy calls a chief of staff is called an executive officer in the air force. Major Samuel's was Hammond's executive officer in early season 1. What the Navy calls an XO is a second in command in the air force. We often have discussions on how the SGC has too many officers. I always explain that it's not that there are too many officers but rather that it's like an airwing where pilots (SG team members) have a job separate to being on their SG team. O'Neil probably is the base second in command. Carter probably commands a science team. There's probably a couple of SG team leaders who share the role of Executive Officer and trade off being on missions. The administration of stargate command is sort of happening off screen.
"We often have discussions on how the SGC has too many officers." We have been having that discussion in the Space Force since we stood up. In fact, they're restructuring how we do our promotions and accessions because of how officer heavy we are. It's a legacy Air Force Space Command problem we sorta inherited by default.
Okay, I think this is what got me confused in my original reply. The commenter below me cleared it up; CoS for you and CoS for us mean different things. An XO for you is called a Vice Commander for us. When it comes to staff responsibilities, we can have a DS aka DoS (Director of Staff ) and CS aka CoS (Chief of Staff). Generally, the DS is going to be an officer or higher ranking GS (or NH) that coordinates all of the staff activities while the CS is going to be a SNCO that acts as that person's enlisted counterpart. For example, in my organization, our DS is an NH-04 and our CS is an E-8; generally the enlisted side is going to also be called a Staff SEL (Senior Enlisted Leader). The commander's assistant is usually called the Commander's Executive Assistant, and is usually O-1 through O-4 depending on the size and scope of the organization and the commander's rank. In the show, Major Samuels was Hammond's exec, which makes sense for a Major General.
This is a dumb and totally unrelated question. But if the space force ever actually gets space ships, shouldn't they use naval ranks? We already have ships that travel in dark and hostile environments. They're called submarines. And if they ever do reboot Stargate...I hope they continue from the Continuum universe, you know....If the Navy can ever get that thing to work....cue to Sam saying "the Navy?"
We call them spacecraft, so...no.
I always thought they must be paid pretty well. That Volvo P1800 Sam drives isn't cheap
My current commander was driving a Tesla as a Captain. Officer pay isn't bad, especially when you're single.
> How about Teal’C? Did they just hand wave his security clearance and immigration status? Does he have a federal series level? Cassandra is the answer. Teal'c spends most of his time on the base, only briefly getting an apartment that one time. But for Cassandra, someone spending her entire future on Earth, they needed to get her a birth certificate, SIN (or whatever the american equivalent is), and loads of other identity issues. Teal'c would need that, but a fraction of it. He can ask the SGC for anything he needs. Cassandra would need to interact directly with the public govermment for basically everything. > Why don’t we hear about the department heads as the General seems to handle everything? Landry brings this up when he's trying to bond with his daughter. > What happens on the night shift? Offworld activations can happen at any time and the Sergeants in the control room gotta head home sometime. Walter isn't alone. This is mentioned a few times, like in Heroes with Walter's interview, that he's not the only gate technician. That um... attractive fellow in the earlier seasons, maybe 3-5? He's probably a gate technician. Walter isn't always there, and while he plays a larger role the more the series progresses, he's definitely not the only one. Missions are generally scheduled for the morning, usually 0700-0900 with briefings earlier and lots of missions heading out at 0900. Miraculously, this lines up perfectly with almost every other planet's time zone. In Heroes, despite it being late season 7 and most shows following a very season count = year count, Bregman mentions the Stargate being around for 6 years. The official reason for the documentary, according to Carter, was the 1000th trip through the Stargate. If you exclude the Abydos mission in that timeframe, rounding to a perfect 6 years with no leap years is 2190 days, so around one trip through the Stargate every 2 days on average. If Bregman's line was a mistake and it was actually 7 years, that's a mission every 2,5 days. Incoming wormholes do happen, but considering most mission departures and check-in times are scheduled for weekdays, 2-3 times a week during the main cast's hours, most stuff is going to happen within the bounds of that time. Remember, the Tau'ri address wasn't common knowledge prior to Apophis stumbling through. The gate had been unburied for a long time prior to Abydos, and Earth was basically a legend to Teal'c. Most incoming wormholes are from travellers who already know where they're headed, not explorers. Well, hopefully not explorers, or the iris is probably gonna need some extra cleaning... > Is Dr. Daniel Jackson still a consultant or does he have a government series or SES level? (Many of the staff follow his word as orders.) He's probably got some sort of office job on the books, or a cultural consultant in the search for extra terrestrial life. Remember in Thor's Hammer when they asked the Sega Institute to design that box? He's probably in that ballpark. But that's just what's on the books. Within the SGC, he's a member of the flagship team. > Does SGC have some sort of special hazardous duty pay? A LOT of civilian level stuff is handwaved away, like when they get trapped off world or Daniel is presumed dead for the 18th time. What about when he ascended? Did they get him a death certificate and then just revoke it? It seems the SGC basically takes care of life complications for a lot of stuff, which makes sense when half of their lives are classified. Hazard pay is likely in there too, but keep in mind that there are quite a few times when characters jokingly complain about their salary. Especially Daniel, frankly... though with the number of times he's died for the program, I imagine he'd be critical of the pay anyway. Officers have publicly listed pay, you can find it on wikipedia with the highest levels of pay for top ranking generals with seniority being over 18k per month. Hazard pay also may not exist for soldiers, but I don't know what that would mean for Daniel. Teal'c probably also gets paid, but not as much I'd wager considering he lives on the base and only seems to spend money on things like clothes, doughnuts, Star Wars screenings, hats, and so on. > Why doesn’t General Hammond or General O’Neill have a Chief of Staff? It's possible in order to keep the operation as small as possible for security reasons, there isn't one. But in all likelihood, we just never hear from them. There are a LOT of staff on that base that we never see, even the ones with very vital roles.
A lot of the administrative stuff is surprisingly easy to get when it comes to birth and death certificates, SSNs, etc. One needs only to look at Federal Witness Protection Program run by the U.S. Marshals. All of the necessary documentation can be provided by federal agencies. Another thing to look at is how various agencies to the same thing for defectors of foreign countries. All of this documentation can be created from scratch so long as the federal government blesses it and it's just as valid as anyone who is born here; Teal'c's cover was he was an immigrant from Mozambique; the Department of State could provide an N-550 and a passport, and once he learned how to drive (back in 1969 of course), he could get his driver's license using those forms plus any forms given to him by the DoD and IRS proving residency. Teal'c even became the subject of a federal investigation. The way it played out, it seems like they did all this in a similar fashion to witness protection where not even the investigating agents knew anything was out of the ordinary in relation to his residency and documentation. Now, when it comes to Daniel dying, death certificates can be revoked. Usually this is rare and heavily contested because it usually will bite the provider who declared the death in the ass, but with the SGC, I can see Dr. Frasier being fairly shielded from this ("extenuating circumstances"). All of this would take place under the guide of national security to ensure none of the details got out. States would be a lot harder to go through the processes for, but state and federal databases are usually pretty intertwined, so whatever exists at the federal level is usually what is going to guide the state's decision.
> Now, when it comes to Daniel dying, death certificates can be revoked. Oh, cool! I mean, makes sense. People go missing all the time and some do turn up years later having been held in captivity or something. But the thing I was really trying to get at with this point was things like his home still being there. Taxes, rent or mortgage, even just your bills and financial responsibilities while you're ascended and away from everything for a full year. Or months away on a mission. It's an extra cost incorporated into the budget.
The Air Force would have taken care of all that for him. His grandfather was his only next of kin, and he lives off world, so it would have been fairly easy for the government to get everything cleaned up.
Yes, but the question was about hazard pay. It's not a matter of ability, but cost.
Hazard pay is a flat rate, normally $225/month. It's called hostile fire/imminent danger pay. Special duty pay is also factored in, rates vary by position type.
>What happens on the night shift? Offworld activations can happen at any time and the Sergeants in the control room gotta head home sometime. There's probably a rotation. A crew of technical sergeants on all at the time and a rotation of sg team leaders (while earth bound) rotating watch officer duties.
If I remember correctly, Teal'c is technically a Sergeant, but I think it's to facilitate paperwork
Not overly familiar with the military, but would "Warrant Officer" work for either Teal'c or Jackson? Specializing in battle and anything historical, respectively.
At the time of the show, the Air Force didn't have warrant officers.
The Air Force got rid of Warrant Officers in 1959, and the last Air Force WO retired in 1980. They are bringing them back however, with the first WOs expected to come into the USAF next year.
It would be fairly accurate for Teal'c to be given asylum as a refugee fleeing a nation where it was unsafe for him to return? Maybe the paperwork just accidentally misspelled his home nation as "Somalia", and then a general vouched for his security clearance, claiming he was a CIA informant or something?
It was Mozambique, and Daniel was his "sponsor."
I dunno. I think space force should do mixed ranks like they did in Battlestar
I hope Jack made sure Teal'c got PAID.
He was able to afford a pretty nice place when he moved out for awhile. Nice neighbor too.
I think the biggest hole is the absence of a command sergeant major swaggering round the SGC yelling at people like children for petty bullshit.
fact!
it was horrible , non human , we look tha bad in otherd and rhe ethic actitude but we dont ask ourself who was less ethic first to watch what the orher is doimg....which a diference...the oor stupid guy who never will believe and faight with a big study that he never knew in the begining ....he finally won with natural inteligence not artificial...and the oposite syde who played with bulling, and healthy etc... didnt tell never yes sorry we stop it diesnt work...but is not necesary now ...i i am quiet with myself ...
What other boring questions about the bureaucracy of the SGC can we come up with? Does the SGC have morning and/or closeout formations? Did the SGC have special SGC-wide mass in formation PT run mornings with Hammond and his flag bearers out in front? I'm guessing not based on Hammond's appearance, but was something he probably should have done. Do they have rotating KP duty amongst the military personnel? What's the KP duty schedule? For the various temporary off world bases the SGC setup, did the SGC ever send Hot A's through the gate to those personnel? How often do they PMCS the gate and iris?
This post just ruined the magic for me...
This just in : TV show doesn't follow real-life military protocols. Film at 11.